ObsidianVault/Running Start/AD450 - Data Science Development/Discussion - Exploring the World of Data Visualization.md

#rs/class/ad450 #rs/discussion

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Here is the article that I chose: Make the user to look where you want them to look: the guide on guiding attention

Summary

This article discusses techniques that can be used to draw the attention of users to certain data and parts of visualizations. It focuses especially on the design of dashboards and how to guide a user through them in the intended way to read the data presented. Some key points include:

• The sequence used for reading a dashboard is overview first, then zoom and filter and finally details when needed
• Layout of data is important since users often read left to right or top to bottom
• There are several techniques such as size and color that are powerful for drawing a user's attention
• Text hints and interactivity are important to provide extra information or details when needed

Reflection

This article is relevant because creating effective dashboards is a very useful skill in an increasingly data-driven world and it is important to be able to understand the data presented. There is often risk in data overload and not knowing what to take away and this article presents important methods to avoid this.

The data visualization techniques are relatively general ideas but when used properly they can be very powerful. When a user is viewing a dashboard or data it is very important that they are able to get the important information and view it in the most helpful way. Helping the user to focus on important information can streamline the decision-making process and reduce data overload.

I haven't dome much with designing dashboards but I think that this information can be helpful for more common data visualization as well. One thing that I will try to focus on more in the future is the use of color in my graphs. I usually just let the plotting library handle the colors and while it is usually able to get distinct colors it doesn't do anything to draw attention. Thinking about important parts of the graph and drawing attention with color could be very helpful in some scenarios.